Despite having formed a unity agreement last April torpedoing peace talks, Hamas and Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas’s Fatah faction seem to be slowly sliding into open warfare in Gaza, as an attempted assassination on a Fatah official on Monday caps off incessant back and forth car bombings.

Mamoon Sweidan, the Fatah official who serves in the Gaza office on foreign relations, told the Palestinian Arab Ma’an News Agency that on Monday two masked gunmen in a Subaru conducted a drive-by shooting, targeting him as he was getting into his car outside the al-Saadi building in Gaza City where he lives.

The official said two of his guards exchanged fire with the would-be assassins, and that both guards were wounded.

The assassination attempt is just the latest in a recent string of attacks that risk pushing Hamas and Fatah back into outright warfare; the two have been enemies since Hamas ousted Fatah by force in 2005, seizing control of Gaza, and the lukewarm unity deal has done little of substance to lessen that enmity.

On Sunday unidentified attackers set the car of Fatah official Abed al-Munim Ramadan Tahrawi on fire in the Nuseirat “refugee camp” before fleeing the scene.

That arson came just hours after the car of a senior Hamas official in the interior ministry of the terrorist organization’s government was likewise set on fire in Jabaliyah in northern Gaza earlier on Sunday.

Just over a week ago, the car of Hamas official Sheikh Sami Hams was bombed in Nuseirat.

The spate of back and forth car bombings was in full swing in January as well, with the car of Fatah official Adil Udeid set on fire in front of his Gaza home, and Fatah leader Ahmad Alwan’s car blown up in Gaza City.

Just prior to that the car of Administrative and Financial Manager of the Hamas-run military police, Helmi Khalaf, was blown up in Gaza City.

Did you know any of that? We follow this crap, and we didn’t. These are the so-called Palestinians, and these are the lovable underdogs so championed by world leaders.

On occasion of the 50th anniversary yesterday of “the Launch” of the Fatah movement in 1965 when the organization carried out its first terror attack against Israel by attempting to blow up the National Water Carrier, Fatah is still promoting violence as “legitimate resistance” and Martyrdom-death as an ideal to strive for.

During December, Fatah posted several items on its official Facebook page that either promote the use of arms to fight Israel or encourage Palestinians to seek death for Allah. One text compared Mecca with Jerusalem:

“If the ground of Mecca is for worship, the ground of Jerusalem is for Martyrdom-death (Shahada).”
[Facebook, “Fatah – The Main Page,” Dec. 12, 2014]

Another text described Fatah as the movement that “has taught us to love the homeland, and to love to die for it”:

“We owe much to Fatah. It is looking at us with Yasser Arafat’s eyes, and is revealed to us through his black keffiyeh (head dress).

Yasser Arafat’s eyes? You asked for it:

I think I’d rather watch Lena Dunham dancing in a thong. (No! I’m over her!)

Fatah has also used its anniversary to glorify past terror attacks. One Facebook post included a poster from the 5th anniversary of “the Launch” of Fatah, on Jan. 1, 1970, showing images of what appear to be terror attacks in various Israeli cities.

This image, showing pictures of Arafat and PA Chairman Abbas, is a poster from the video displaying the text:

“Fatah will carry on the struggle in all its forms until the liberation of the land and the man.”

Fatah hasn’t changed. Abbas is Arafat with a better tailor, whether Kerry and Obama acknowledge it or not.

The political party of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas posted a drawn image online showing a large pile of skulls and skeletons with Jewish stars on them.

An Israeli government spokesman called it “despicable.”

Along with the image, posted Wednesday to the Facebook page of the Fatah party, are the words “lingering on your skulls.”

When contacted by CNN on Friday, a member of the Fatah Central Committee disavowed the image.
“Fatah did not design this image,” Mahmoud al-Aloul said. The person who posted it to Fatah’s page “is currently being asked to remove it. The image and the text do not reflect the opinions of Fatah.” The image was then pulled from the page.

Oh, come on, Fatah. How much worse is it than your average, run-of-the-mill genocidal incitement? BTW, credit to CNN for covering this. As far as I can see, no other mainstream US news site did.

The Hamas regime in Gaza continues to execute its own civilians, even while engaged in a terror war against Israel.

In a central venue in Gaza City on Friday morning, 11 local Arab residents who were charged with “collaborating with Israel” were publicly executed, according to the Arabic-language Al-Rai news agency as cited by Walla!.

The public killing, conducted by terrorists evidently associated with Hamas, comes in the midst of a rising wave of “collaborator” executions in the terrorist stronghold of Gaza.

Eleven here, eleven there—the bodies pile up.

Do they ever:

Hamas’s cynical disregard for its own citizens, openly displayed by fighting while embedded in civilian infrastructure and using human shields, has not spared “Hamas collaborators” either.

A Hamas spokesperson recently told Al Jazeera that since Operation Pillar of Defense ended in 2012, “hundreds of our men were martyred digging the tunnels during the previous lull period.”

Many of those who survived digging the terror tunnels did not meet a better end than their “martyred” companions; according to reports, in recent weeks Hamas has executed dozens of the diggers to make absolutely certain they would not reveal information about the locations in which they were digging.

Of the hundreds who died in the digging, “at least 160 children have been killed in the tunnels” according to the Journal of Palestine Studies in 2012, indicating how Hamas had no qualms about lethally manipulating child labor.

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas took Qatar-based Hamas political leader Khaled Mashaal to task during their meeting in Doha Thursday, over Hamas plans to launch attacks against the PA in the West Bank, a senior Palestinian source told The Times of Israel.

Mashaal and Abbas had a “difficult” discussion, the source said, in which Abbas castigated Hamas and called its members “liars” over a Shin Bet allegation that captured Hamas operatives had confessed to a plot to attack PA forces in the West Bank and even stage a “coup” there.

Benjamin Netanyahu says Hamass is as bad as ISIS, and I won’t disagree. But as we reported yesterday, Fatah is hardly better:

Jibril Rajoub, Head of the PA Sports Authority and Deputy Secretary of the Fatah Central Committee announced that Fatah has made a “political decision” to support slaughtering Jews who live in settlements.

I haven’t killed anyone, and will continue to live my life in such a way that I never will. But these two scumbags, Hamass and Fatah, can’t kill enough of each other to satisfy me. They can have my quota.

Jibril Rajoub, Head of the PA Sports Authority and Deputy Secretary of the Fatah Central Committee announced that Fatah has made a “political decision” to support slaughtering Jews who live in settlements:

“OK, brother, here is the occupation, am I stopping you from slaughtering a settlement? No one is stopping anyone… Our political decision is resistance in the occupied territories in order to bring an end to the occupation [using] all forms of resistance.”

The Fatah movement, headed by PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, is seen by many in the West as a peaceful alternative to Hamas for a future peace agreement. Palestinian Media Watch’s book Deception documents that the PA presents different messages to the world in English than in Arabic to its people.

Partners? Hardly:

“I’m telling everyone: Fatah has decided that our relations with the Israelis are relations between enemies. There is no kind of coordination between the Israelis and us.

On that I agree with the Deputy Secretary. They are enemies and should be treated as such—until they tender their unconditional surrender. Then and only then will it be time for “peace.” What’s been happening over the past decade (two—three—six) is just a slow bloodletting. Seen thusly, the “peace process” is just another pogrom.

If it indeed turns out that Hamas was behind the kidnappings of Israeli teens Eyal Yifrah (19), Naftali Frenkel (16), and Gilad Sha’ar, Fatah will regard its unity agreement with Hamas as null and void, a top Palestinian Authority official said Monday. Fatah will consider the kidnappings as “a stab in the back” of the deal, and will no longer consider itself obligated to honor the agreement.

According to the official, Hamas had promised not to carry out terror attacks in Judea and Samaria, as part of the agreement. With the kidnappings, Hamas has clearly violated that promise. The official added that after the incident is over, Fatah will act against “Hamas assets.”

So, Fatah condemns the kidnappings, huh? Then how do they explain this?

Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah movement continues to glorify and celebrate the kidnapping of three Israeli youths last week, with postings on its official Facebook page.

In an odious distortion of the World Cup 2014 logo, the official Palestinian Authority daily printed today a cartoon celebrating the kidnapping of three Israeli youths last Thursday night, June 12, 2014.

Abbas in 2011:
“Hamas kidnapped a soldier (Gilad Shalit) and managed to keep him for five years – that’s a good thing.” [Official PA TV, Oct. 24, 2011]

Rajoub representing Abbas in 2011:
“We salute those who dug the tunnel [to kidnap Gilad Shalit]; we salute those
who captured the captive (Gilad Shalit), and salute those who guarded the captive until this deal was completed.”
[Official PA TV, Oct. 30, 2011]

Israel told the Arabs and they told us that if Hamass was part of any Arab “unity” government, all bets were off. Tish-tosh, said John Kerry. Piffle. Hamass isn’t that much worse than the bog-standard Arab terrorism movement.

Five days after three Israeli teenagers were kidnapped, the European Union officially on Tuesday released a statement condemning the event and calling for the teens’ speedy return. The statement followed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s implicit criticism of the union for rushing to condemn what it considers Israeli violations while delaying its denunciations of Palestinian terrorism.

In an odious distortion of the World Cup 2014 logo, the official Palestinian Authority daily printed today a cartoon celebrating the kidnapping of three Israeli youths last Thursday night, June 12, 2014. Instead of the famous logo of the World Cup 2014, in which three victorious hands hold the globe, together creating the prestigious trophy, the PA cartoon shows a “trophy” of three hands holding three people with their hands up in surrender. Instead of the text “Brasil” below the “trophy,” the word “Khalil” is written – Arabic for Hebron, a city near where the Israeli youths were kidnapped.

Still in doubt?

Similarly, Fatah is celebrating the kidnapping as a victory. On its official Facebook page, the movement posted a cartoon of a victory sign with three fingers held up instead of two, symbolizing the three kidnapped youths. Accompanying the picture was a smiley with the text, “For your interpretation :)”.

All I can say is it’s a good thing I don’t have access to the nuclear launch codes.

Reluctantly, Bloodthirstan has no choice but to fall in line behind the international community and recognize the fraudulent unity of the illegitimate government of the fictional people known as the Palestinians. Glad you boys buried the hatchet.

Palestinian forces loyal to President Mahmoud Abbas have clashed with Hamas supporters late on on Monday despite a unity deal between the two rivals, witnesses said.

The confrontation was the latest sign reconciliation efforts are in trouble. [Ya think?]

…

The Islamic militant Hamas seized the Gaza Strip in 2007, leaving Abbas only with parts of the West Bank. Last week’s formation of a technocrat unity government was meant to end the split.

But tensions escalated and Hamas forced Gaza banks to stay closed for the past week amid a dispute with Abbas over salaries for its loyalists.

Webster’s defines a technocrat as “a scientist or technical expert who has a lot of power in politics or industry”. What scientific or technical expertise do these vermin have? Hamass exists only to annihilate Israel (terrorists in suits), and Abbas wrote a dissertation denying the Holocaust. They must really hate each other if they can’t come together over a loathing of Jews.

John Kerry has no problem sitting down with these creepy crawlies, but it doesn’t look like the rest of us will have to. Whew!

Hamas’ military wing, the Izz A-Din Al-Qassam Brigades, has produced a Hebrew language video mocking Israelis, sung to the tune of Israel’s national anthem “Hatikva” (“The Hope”). It was posted on its website and on Hamas’ TV’s YouTube channel, to coincide with Israel’s 66th Independence Day earlier this week. The animated video named “The End of Hope” shows Hamas soldiers conquering Israel and expelling Jews to Germany and Russia.

…

This latest propaganda video asserts that “the Zionists’ army is made of wax and “is melting.” A child is seen throwing a stone that causes Israel’s Parliament Knesset to crumble. The song promises that all Jews will be forced to leave Israel while”the fool who insists [on remaining] – his fate is sealed – [he’ll end up] under the ground,” sung to pictures of Israeli Minister of Tourism Rehavam Ze’evi who was murdered by PFLP terrorists in 2001, and Israel’s current Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon with a target around his face. Israelis are then forced by Hamas soldiers to board ships to their “country of origin,” as signs point to “deportation to Russia” and “deportation to Germany,” while in the background are the bodies of Israeli soldiers. The video ends with Jews fleeing the Western Wall and Hamas soldiers standing victorious over the Dome of the Rock Mosque, which is flying Palestinian flags. The song announces that Jerusalem’s name will be the Arabic “Beit Al-Maqdis” and not “Jerusalem.” The final picture shows a burning Israeli flag with words “Israel will surely disappear.”

On one of its official Facebook pages the Fatah movement, which is headed by PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, yesterday posted a warning to Israelis. A sign showed an assault rifle and a map of “Palestine” that included both PA areas and all of Israel. In Arabic, Hebrew, and English it said: “Warning. This is a land of a Palestinian state and the occupation to leave immediately” (English original).

Internationally, Abbas continuously affirms the Palestinians’ desire for a two-state solution and a Palestinian state on the 1967-borders. However, that statement is not reflected in this poster, nor in many other statements and messages to the Palestinian people.

…

Another Fatah official, Abbas Zaki, clearly explained the goal of bringing Israel to an end when he said:

“Israel will come to an end. If I say that I want to remove it from existence, this will be great, great, [but] it is hard. This is not a [stated] policy. You can’t say it to the world. You can say it to yourself.” [Al-Jazeera, Sept. 23, 2011]

He recently also stated about Israelis that “I believe that Allah will gather them so we can kill them. I am informing the murderer of his death.” [Official PA TV, March 12, 2014]

Oh, I think you can say it, Zak. It’s not like it’s a big secret or anything. You’d have to be mentally deficient not to know.

Speaking of whom, Obama and Kerry blame Israel and say it’s all about the settlements.

A video broadcast on Hamas’ Al-Aqsa TV yesterday shows actors playing Israeli soldiers entering the Gaza Strip, as a text on screen warns, “You will end up in Hell.” One by one the actor-soldiers are shot in the head, after which a Hamas sniper collects all the dog tags of the killed soldiers. A text appears on the screen: “Our harvest is your heads.”

…

The following is the text in the official PA daily from April 16, 2014:

…

He [Haniyeh] added: ‘The kidnapping of Israeli soldiers is part of the agenda of the Palestinian resistance and of the Hamas movement, and will continue as long as there are Palestinian prisoners in the Israeli prisons.’

What’s the sound of peace talks going up in smoke, Secretary Kerry? Poof?

It was the most violent clash in months between Fatah and the Islamic militant Hamas, which seized Gaza from Fatah’s leader, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, in 2007.

The incident signaled continued hostility between Hamas and Fatah despite reconciliation attempts. It also suggested Hamas is on edge as it struggles to survive an Egyptian border closure.

…

“A group of Fatah supporters organized an activity in Khan Younis without contacting police for approval, and that is a breach of the law and obvious attempt to bring security chaos back,” said Hamas official al-Bozoum.

Israeli students went to hear what Mahmoud Abbas (nom de guerre, Abu Mazen) had to say:

RAMALLAH, West Bank — Eight buses packed with Israeli students and activists traveled the winding roads of the West Bank, wet with rain, to the presidential compound in Ramallah on Sunday.

The excitement of the youngsters — who disembarked at the Beit El checkpoint for packaged sandwiches before entering Ramallah with a local police escort — was palpable. The driver of this reporter’s bus, reserved entirely for the media, chose hit song “Salam” by Israeli singer Mosh Ben Ari as the wishful soundtrack for the short trip from Jerusalem.

…

Ophir Rosensaft, an education student at the Beit Berl college near Kfar Saba, came to Ramallah as an activist with Peace Now. Upset with the fact that his mobile phone was taken by the PA security guards at the metal detectors, he promptly borrowed mine for the purpose of selfies to be shared with his friends back home.

“I’m pretty excited,” he admitted. “I came to hear Abu Mazen’s unmediated opinions, not as they’re presented through Israeli media.”

“Everything we are doing these days is for the young generation in Israel and Palestine, it’s for their future. The younger generation of Palestinians is similar to the Israeli one in that it wants peace.”

Hey, I hope they do reconcile. I’m just skeptical, that’s all. Can’t say we haven’t been here before.

I hope they reconcile because the only difference between the pious Jew-haters of Hamass and the corrupt Jew-haters of Fatah is in the venality.

Hamass is proud and defiant of its Jew hatred, Fatah slightly more camouflaged. I’d like to see John Kerry try to force Israeli concessions to an unholy alliance of Hamass and Fatah. Of course, I wouldn’t, but even he might not have the ego and arrogance to try.